Who knew that Sam Smith and Madonna had been sitting on a collaboration since February? That's when they recorded their new duet, "Vulgar."
Sam writes on Instagram, "VULGAR is a song that is very special to me. Me, the QUEEN, and a group of some of the most talented people I know, got in the studio the day after the Grammys and we created this piece of music."
"The creativity was pure and the energy was alive," they continue. "I’m so excited to share this with you sailors!! VULGAR IS BEAUTIFUL!!"
Madonna introduced Sam and Kim Petras' performance of "Unholy" at the Grammys February 5. On February 10, Sam shared an Instagram photo of themselves posing with Madonna and wrote, "Overwhelmed, grateful and inspired. Thank you for your love and support @madonna. I'll never forget your kindness." While fans assumed they were talking about Madonna's Grammy speech, it now seems they might have been referring to the song they'd just recorded.
Speaking to Apple Music, Sam added of the recording session, "We all got in the studio and just had an amazing evening creating and writing and expressing. And, of course, it was the biggest dream come true for me to get to work with and perform and sing with the Queen of Pop."
One of the producers on the song is OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder; Sam's longtime collaborator Jimmy Napes also worked on the track.
The North American leg of Sam's Gloria tour starts July 25. Madonna's Celebration tour kicks off July 15. She posted a video of herself playing the song for her dancers at her tour rehearsal.
(Video contains uncensored profanity.)